Another woman, Maria Perez, who walked out of a supermarket in downtown Caracas with several rolls, told the agency: "Here there's a shortage of everything — butter, sugar, flour" — but "there always used to be toilet paper."

But Fleming, the commerce minister, blamed the shortage on excessive demand caused by "a media campaign."

"Economists say Venezuela's shortages of some consumer products stem from price controls meant to make basic goods available to the poorest parts of society and the government's controls on foreign currency. Many factories operate at half capacity because the currency controls make it hard for them to pay for imported parts and materials. Business leaders say some companies verge on bankruptcy because they cannot extend lines of credit with foreign suppliers."

As NPR's Carrie Kahn reported, along with the food shortages, Venezuela also faces high inflation and a recent 30 percent devaluation of the national currency.

"During his presidency, Chavez diverted much of that potential [oil] wealth to Venezuelan consumers in the form of cheap gasoline (18 cents per gallon or less). He propped up the Castro regime in Cuba, and he offered Venezuelan oil on highly preferential terms to 18 Caribbean and Latin American countries through an energy alliance he called PetroCaribe."

But with declining oil revenues and growing economic problems at home, Maduro may not have the luxury enjoyed by his late mentor and predecessor.